Bob Cerv

Major League Baseball Player. For twelve seasons (1951 to 1962), he played at the outfielder (primarily left field) position with the New York Yankees, Kansas City Athletics, Los Angeles Angels and Houston Colt .45s. Born Robert Henry Cerv, he attended Weston High School and later was stationed in the Pacific Theater with the United States Navy during World War II. Following his return home, he enrolled at the University of Nebraska, where he played collegiate baseball. While with the Huskers, he achieved first team All-American honors, as he contributed to two Big Seven championships. To date, he remains as one of the school's all time sluggers. Signed by the Yankees as an amateur free agent in 1950, he made his Major League debut on August 1, 1951 and played in twelve games that year. From 1951 to 1953, he contributed to three Yankee world championships and in 1955, he hit a pinch home run during the World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers. In 1956, he experienced an additional world championship and recorded one hit in one at bat during the 1956 World Series. After he was acquired by the Kansas City Athletics, he saw his playing time increase in 1957 and in 1958, he produced a career-high 157 hits, while belting 38 home runs and driving in 104 runs, with a .305 batting average and a .371 on-base-percentage. He achieved all star status that year (1958). He briefly returned to the Yankees in 1960 and contributed to their pennant-winning season. He hit .357 during the 1960 World Series. He was selected by the Los Angeles Angels during the 1960 Expansion Draft and had the distinction of being a part of the Angels' roster during their inaugural season of 1961. He would return to the Yankees for a third stint (1961 to 1962), before finishing his career with the Houston Colt .45s in 1962. In 829 career regular season games, he compiled 624 hits, with a lifetime .276 batting average. He went on to serve as a baseball coach at the collegiate level.